


not alone

by justasuperfan



Series: everything i didn’t say [2]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (Comics), The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Everyone Has Issues, Gen, Hurt Number Five | The Boy, No Incest, No Smut, Number Five | The Boy Has Issues, Number Five | The Boy Needs A Hug, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:54:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25424983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justasuperfan/pseuds/justasuperfan
Summary: in which five is met by an unfamiliar detective, who tries her best to keep him safe
Relationships: Diego Hargreeves/Eudora Patch, Number Five | The Boy & Diego Hargreeves
Series: everything i didn’t say [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1841560
Comments: 6
Kudos: 423





	not alone

**Author's Note:**

> basically what would’ve happened if five hadn’t left the store before the police arrived. hope you enjoy! I’m new to ao3, so if you have any suggestions, comments are always appreciated
> 
> TW: injuries

“Sweep the area! If the shooters are still here they might try to pull a sneak attack.” Eudora called, holding her own gun at the ready as her team pulled open the doors. 

Who had they been shooting at anyways? Could it be the same people who had been under attack at Griddy’s? Nothing made sense. Even the evidence was strange. Eudora had no doubt this case would likely be just as confusing and time-consuming as the last one. And she had no doubt that Diego would be showing up as well.

Why couldn’t the guy just take a hint? Things were done between the two of them. Eudora had made it increasingly clear that she didn’t want to be with him anymore, but he just kept trying. It annoyed the hell out of her, especially when he kept trying to help her figure out these new cases. She couldn’t have any distractions. Any other day and she might be willing to give his sorry ass another chance. As hard as it was to admit, she still did like his stupid smile, that endearing scar, his few good qualities. The man had always known how to make her smile, and would stop at nothing to make sure she was safe. It was hard to turn her back on that, but she did what she’d had to do. 

Focus, she told herself as she swept the area with a flashlight, her steady hands ready to pull the trigger at any sign of suspicious movement. “Police! Come out with your hands up!” A few others copied her calls as they walked around. Eudora took the front of the store, but she couldn’t help but noticed the destroyed racks of clothes, riddled with bullet holes, and toppled over mannequins. A shelf near her had been nearly tipped over. Merchandise littered the floor and a sign that had been sitting on top was destroyed, with a distinct boot mark on it. Huh. 

She went around the side of the shelf. Nothing. She kept walking and then—

Oh my God. A kid. A scared one, nonetheless, clutching—was that a mannequin?—like his life depended on it. His eyes were wide with terror and he didn’t notice Eudora at first, because he was peering around the shelf as if looking for a way out.

“Hello?” She said softly. She had been trying not to startle him, but that apparently didn’t work. The kid jumped in surprise, shivering as he turned his face to her.

“Shit.” His eyes went even wider and something like blue sparks came from his hands. Eudora squinted in confusion, then crouched next to him.

“I’m not going to hurt you. What’s your name?” She searched his schoolboy’s uniform for something to indicate where he went to school, a nametag, anything. It wasn’t easy, as the boy kept scooting away from her, trying to stand but thinking better of it and sitting back down. But she noticed a patch just below her collar that read...Umbrella Academy? 

No, that couldn’t be right. Was this one of Diego’s siblings? But they were all born on the same day. How was this one so young? Had he stolen a uniform? Made one? But no one had paid so much attention to the heroes in seventeen years. They wouldn’t have any super fans still milling around. Still, it was possible. Maybe the kid had tried to be like the heroes and came to stop the perps stupidly. But the patch, the whole uniform, looked to real to be made by a kid, or even an adult. It had to be the real thing. But how?

“Listen, kid, I just want to know if you’re okay. Can you tell me your parent or guardian’s number so I can call them?”

“I’m fine.” He said, a bite in his voice. He pulled the bald mannequin closer to him when he noticed Eudora inspecting it.

She had the vague sense she’d seen him before. Square jaw, tan skin, penetrating green eyes, Umbrella Academy uniform, blue sparks on his hands. Something was off about this. “Would you mind telling me why you have a mannequin? Are you stealing it?”

“No!” He answered, a little loud. “I’m—just leave me alone. I can get home on my own.” He was sweating, teeth gritted as he pulled himself up, tucking the mannequin into a bag. 

“Can you at least tell me what happened?” She tried to make her voice as sweet as possible. She’d dealt with hard witnesses and hostages before, but this kid was downright frustrating. 

“I’m going home.”

“Wait!” She grabbed his arm as he turned, and heard him hiss in pain. “You’re hurt.”

He turned back towards her, grimacing. “I’m. Fine.”

She huffed in annoyance, letting go of his arm. She hadn’t meant to hurt him. 

And that’s when, surprise surprise, Diego Hargreeves waltzed in the broken door like he owned the place. “Patch?” He called, his eyes moving around until he found her and the boy. 

“Fuck.” The boy whispered, trying to run, but Eudora grabbed his arm again, lighter this time. 

“Five? What’s going on?” Diego strode over to the pair and watched as the boy gritted his teeth, blue sparks appearing in his hands again. Diego obviously knew what was happening, because his eyes went wide and he put a hand on the boy’s. “Listen here you little shit, you need to stop getting into trouble.”

“Diego?”

Diego looked over to Eudora, his eyes sympathetic. Well that was new. “Sorry Patch, my brother’s a pain in the ass.”

“I thought all your siblings were the same age.” She asked, letting go of the boy again and crossing her arms.

“Well, um...it’s complicated.” The boy snorted. That’s when Eudora remembered where she’d seen him.

“You’re Five! From the Umbrella Academy! But...how?” She looked him up and down. He hadn’t aged past thirteen. Everyone had heard about his disappearance on the news, and heard when they pronounced him dead. Eudora hadn’t thought about it in fifteen years. So how was he here? Now?

“I said it’s complicated. Dammit, Five.”

“I’m...f-f…” Then Five promptly collapsed on the floor. Shit.

“Fuck!” Diego was at his side in seconds, pulling off his blazer. Eudora followed, helping Diego search the boy’s arm for injuries. Bullet graze on his upper shoulder, split lip, thin layer of sweat. But other than that, he seemed okay. He must’ve passed out for a second from exhaustion and minor blood loss. His eyes were open a second later and he shoved the two away instantly. 

“Five? Could you tell me what happened in here?”

He seemed to finally give in. Maybe it was her sympathetic eyes staring at him, or Diego’s presence, or the fact that he knew he wouldn’t get out of here without complying. He was still gripping the mannequin inside a large duffel bag. “Two psychopaths in masks shot up the place while I was…” He faltered. “...looking for something. I got caught in it.”

Eudora thought for a moment. So many questions floated through her mind. For one, why the mannequin? And why would the people in masks have shot up the store? “You didn’t happen to be at the shootout at Griddy’s, did you?”

Five nodded weakly and sat up.

“What the hell, Five? Why do you keep disappearing and getting yourself into these kinds of things?” Diego snarled..p

“It’s not like I want to.” Five retorted.

“Enough, you two. Five, why don’t we get you cleaned up and question you some more? Then you can get home and stay safe.”

He must’ve realized he had no other options, because he nodded again. Diego and Eudora helped him up and he went to wait in a police car with the duffel bag. Eudora waited until he was all the way into the car before turning to Diego. “Mind explaining why the hell you’re here, and why the hell your brother went missing for seventeen years and came back as a kid?”

Diego fixed her with that look she’d always hated. The one that suggested he knew way more than her and he wouldn’t tell her unless she begged. And she was not begging this man for information. “Diego.” She said again, softly. She knew his weak spot. His eyes softened and his lips pursed. She found herself looking at the scar that ran just above his ear. Whenever she touched it, he just melted. It would definitely get information out of him, but Eudora was not going to seduce her ex into telling her everything. Still, he answered.

“You might want to sit down for this.”

“Well that’s...wow. How did…? Why…?” She had so many questions she couldn’t even begin to count them. 

“Look, I’d love to answer all your questions, but the second my brother gets enough strength, he’s teleporting out of here in a flash. So question him while you can.”

Eudora nodded and made her way to the car. Thankfully, Five was still waiting there. The bullet graze was looking worse by the second, but Five didn’t seem to mind. He was scrawling some equation into a notebook on his lap. Where had he gotten that?

“Alright, Five. So, did you know the guys who shot the place up?”

Eudora fished in the first-aid kit and got a bottle of antiseptic and a cotton ball. Five nodded as she applied the cotton ball to his arm. “They...uh...I know them from...let’s just say they’ve been following me.”

She didn’t want to push him even more, mostly because she knew enough about him to know she was getting way more information than he would normally give anyways. “Were they after you?”

Eudora finished cleaning the wound with a washcloth and inspected it as he answered. “Broken contract or something. Their boss wants me dead.”

She froze. Boss? Contract? It was hard to associate this kid with the old man that Diego said he was, but she believed him nonetheless. When would Diego lie to her? Still, he hadn’t mentioned bosses or contracts or guns. Maybe even Diego didn’t know everything, despite his huge ego. “Were they at Griddy’s with you?”

“Nah. Different goons.”

“This is going to need stitches.”

And that’s how Diego and Five ended up in the mansion at three am, seeking their robot mom to stitch a bullet wound.


End file.
